In Harmony
Michael and I had been together for a long time, through thick and thin. This would be our family's biggest test.
Not long before the terrible visit to my doctor, my husband, Michael, and I bought a farm.
The farm was in Tennessee, 2,000 miles from Los Angeles and a world away from the music industry Michael and I had spent most of our lives in.
We’d lived the proverbial rock ’n’ roll lifestyle, the endless cycle of touring, recording, more touring. But we longed to settle down.
We had two kids, Dylan and Scarlett, and Michael, who practically lived on the road, was doing an album in Nashville, easy driving distance from our 100 acres of rolling hills, grazing cows and horses.
It was family time, time for hayrides and camping by the creeks and fishing in the pond. We began remodeling the farmhouse, filling it with antiques and, hopefully, memories.
Then one day in spring I planted some flowers around a playhouse we’d built for Scarlett. The guys working on the remodel had turned off the water, so I went to fetch some from the pond.
I lugged several buckets, getting the flowers good and drenched. The next day my bucket-carrying arm really hurt, especially underneath.
A couple months before, I’d found a small lump near that spot, but the doctor had said it was probably harmless.
This time the lump seemed bigger and the pain centered right on it. I tried to remind myself that I was only 41 and in great health. But the pain was sharp enough, and I was worried enough, to get it checked out.
Michael came with me to the appointment. I was glad he was there, but I figured we would be in and out pretty quickly, like most mammograms. The doctor, though, said I needed to stay for a sonogram.
“We saw something,” he said. That was all. Something.
We went to another room and I did the sonogram. I watched the doctor’s brow furrow with concern as he looked at the image. He turned to me. “Ms. McDonald,” he said, “you need to see a surgeon here at the hospital. Today. As soon as possible. We’ll call and get you an appointment. It’s very important.”
I walked out of that office in a daze. I know Michael had his arm around me, but I could barely feel it.
Weirdly, what I kept thinking about was that 1970s movie Love Story with Ryan O’Neal and Ali MacGraw. Was I going to be like Ali MacGraw’s character, I wondered, diagnosed with a terminal illness?
Michael and I slowly made our way to the hospital cafeteria to wait for the appointment with the surgeon. I sat there for a minute, then suddenly put my head down and sobbed. Fear overwhelmed me.
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Comments
i can't begin to tell you
i can't begin to tell you how much we've enjoyed your articles in Guideposts, Amy and Michael McDonald. I've been a huge fan for years, maybe this is a different way to tell you. But i thank you for telling your stories, even about mistakes you made, yet your stories i am sure will of influenced so many.
My kids and me use to camp and when i'd want them to come back, i'd crack up my michael mcdonald tape and they'd come running. i had my 5 kids read your article michael and now your's amy. they were impressed, just like i was. one even said, isn't that the singer we could come running back to camp when we'd hear you turn it up? but more important was they asked questions about your articles. an even bigger fan and not just because of both of your music, mona brown missouri
Amy McDonald's experience
Amy McDonald's experience which she shared in this month's Guideposts was so surprising to me because the words she heard wispered to her, "You're going to be okay", were almost exactly the words wispered to me over forty years ago when I was at the lowest point in my life and was contemplating ending it all. I had driven to a secluded spot with the full intent of ending my pain and my life and as I sat there totally alone I heard the simple words, "It will be okay". I say I "heard" it, but I truly did not know if I heard it or felt it, but it was such a profound experience that I knew that it WOULD be okay - whatever lay ahead. Since that time I have never doubted that God had a plan for my life that I had not completed, and, that I would be okay until His time for me to join him. Thank you Amy for letting me know that what I heard so very many years ago has been heard by others. I choose to think it was a heavenly message delivered at the exact moment it was needed most.
I received my Guideposts
I received my Guideposts magazine and usually read it from front to back. This time I just opened the book and there in the middle was the McDonald's story. After reading their story, I just had to tell you mine. Years ago, my mother was scheduled for a mastectomy. I was in my car, sitting at a red light and saying another prayer for her. I heard a voice say loud and clear... "She'll be OK". I was in the car alone, but thought the voice came from the backseat and I jerked my head around to see who it was. I then realized the words had come out of my mouth. I don't remember thinking the words or saying them. I then felt very calm and knew it was God telling me she would be OK... and she was. Even though I'm sure many have had this experience, I have never talked to anyone who has. I was happy to read the McDonalds story and know the words from God helped them through this time. I was amazed when I read His words to them were the same as to me. I hope the McDonalds will see my post too.
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